Chapter 1

Amerie sighed as she set the box she was holding on her old wooden kitchen table. Her heart felt heavy, yet free. She’d made it.

She couldn’t help but smile to herself as she looked around at the partially unpacked boxes scattered throughout her new home. It had been a real effort to scrape together the money to buy this cozy house near the lake. The house was rather small, only two bedrooms and one bathroom. Behind her, dark cabinets and a gray slate counter accompanied a small sink, electric stove, and old fridge. To her right, a narrow hallway led to one of the bedrooms, the bathroom under the stairs, and a small office space near the front of the house. To her left, large black paned windows allowed her a view of the glacier blue mountain lake past her wrap around deck. Her living room contained a tan leather couch under a set of bay windows which was currently covered in a plethora of pillows and half folded blankets. A small coffee table and broken entertainment stand were the only other pieces of furniture in the room. Built in bookshelves made up the far wall and sat empty at present, but Amerie was excited to fill them with her books and trinkets. There may be plenty still left to unpack, but she had done it. This was her home.

A strand of brunette hair fell in her face as she turned to tackle the stack of boxes in the kitchen. Amerie hummed a tune as she tied her wavy hair up out of her way. A gray pitbull mix trotted up to her with a tennis ball in its mouth and whined. Amerie smiled and patted his head.

“I know, Milo. I’ll get the rest of your toys out, soon. Welcome home, bud.”

Milo dropped his ball and laid down at Amerie’s feet as she opened a box containing oven mits and cooking utensils and started organizing. She had just shut the drawer next to the sink when her phone rang.

She barely got a hello out before she heard her mother’s voice. “Did you get everything set up? Has Milo gone swimming yet?”

Amerie smiled. “Well, mom, since I’ve only been here for four hours, no and no.”

“Oh, I should’ve come with you. I can look at flights-“

“I am a grown woman, you know,” Amerie chuckled as she cut off her anxious mother. “I’m fine mom. It’s nice having my own space, and it really is beautiful. I’m just taking it all in. You’ll have to come visit once I have the place set up.”

“Okay, fine. I’m glad to hear you like the place. When do you start your new job?”

“Tuesday. I go in on Monday to meet the rest of the team, though.” The sound of a falling box distracted Amerie and she whipped her head to the living room where Milo was pulling his stuffed otter out of a box. Amerie giggled as Milo ran up to her, squeaking the otter relentlessly and wagging his tail.

Amerie’s mother chuckled. “Milo found his favorite toy, I hear.”

“Yes, I’m clearly a bad dog mom for unpacking the necessities and kitchen before his toys. I kept his tennis ball out on the drive so he could play when we’d stop.”

“He’s going to love it out there, even if I already miss you both.”

“You’ll see us again soon. I’m going to get back to unpacking, though, or I’m going to be sleeping on the floor tonight.”

“Okay, sweetie. Did the movers bring everything in for you already?”

Amerie sighed. “Yes, but they dropped my entertainment stand. Broke one of the legs, cracked the side, and broke the door on it.”

“Are they reimbursing you?”

“They said they’ll send me a check for it. It’s still a bummer.”

“I know, honey, but you’ll get a new one. You’ve had that thing for years now. Chris kept the television, so not like you need the entertainment stand right now.”

Amerie scoffed. “True. I really need to get back to unpacking, mom. I’ll send you some pictures when I have the place set up and call you tomorrow. I love you.”

“Okay. I love you too, Amerie. Glad you guys made it safe. Let me know if you need anything.”

“I will. Bye, mom.” Amerie ended the call and scratched Milo’s head. She leaned against the counter as she tried to decide where to start next. Her bedroom was a logical option, but she was enjoying soaking up the view of the lake and edge of the forest.

Amerie made a cup of coffee and went out on her deck. Milo padded out after her and went down the steps to sniff around the yard. Amerie leaned against the railing and sipped on her coffee. She watched an eagle glide over the lake then swoop down for a fish. As she watched it fly off, she caught a flash of movement along the edge of the pine trees. She glanced and saw nothing, and was going to write it off as nothing until she noticed Milo had paused and looked toward the trees as well. Things seemed to have gotten quiet, and Amerie was acutely aware of the feeling of being watched. She knew that bears, wolves, and mountain lions were in the area. Her nearest neighbors were nearly a mile down the road. Amerie whistled for Milo and kept her eyes on the trees. Milo didn’t move. He stayed focused on the tree line and tilted his head to the right before wagging his tail. Amerie again called for him and he ran to her side, seemingly unbothered. Eyebrow cocked, Amerie turned and walked inside with Milo, locking the door behind them. Another glance at the tree line and nothing showed itself.

With a shake of her head, Amerie placed her now empty coffee cup in the kitchen sink then headed down the hall to her bedroom with a happy Milo in tow. The room was somewhat small, but just big enough to not feel cramped. She missed her spacious apartment in Nashville. Her thoughts wondered to the life that had ended rather abruptly almost two months ago. She had just graduated college and was getting home from work when she walked in on her then fiancé, Chris, in bed with his coworker. Amerie had halted and not said anything as she felt her world come crashing down around her. Chris had tried to make excuses and somehow blame her for working too much. Amerie had simply taken off her diamond ring, set it on the dresser, and walked out the door. Four years thrown out the window for a young waitress. She had gone back to pack her things when Chris was at work the next day and had found a letter along with two dozen roses.

My beautiful Amerie,

I am so sorry that I chose a moment of weakness over you. You deserve so much better than me and I am going to do everything I can to do better for you. I promise I won’t talk to other girls any more. I only did this because you were too busy for me, but I love you. You’re the only one for me. I-

Amerie had scoffed as she crumbled the paper and threw it in the trash with the roses. She was done. Done with the manipulation tactics, gaslighting, and having to pay for his obscene alcohol consumption as he worked spotty side gigs instead of getting a job. She had worked full-time as a waitress while also going to school for three years, and since graduating had gone down to part-time at the restaurant to take a full-time assistant park ranger position. She was done. Packing her things and staying with her mom had given her the time to see and think clearly after the betrayal, and she hadn’t hesitated to apply for the forest ranger job in Montana when it became available.

Amerie blinked away the tears that had built up. There was a mix of emotions: pride for doing what was right for herself, anger at allowing things to have gone on for so long, the faded but still-there sting of betrayal, missing her home town. She missed night time drives with her lifelong friend Gabby, music blasting as they sipped on milkshakes and sang loudly off key to throwbacks on her old Dodge Dart radio. She missed hikes with her college friend Sarah, when they would stumble across a small waterfall and sit talking about future plans for their lives while munching on dried fruit and chocolate. She hated to admit it, but she missed Chris. Not the real Chris, she realized, but the idea of him, when she hadn’t seen the truth of the situation and still thought he was who she was going to spend the rest of her life with. A sour taste in her mouth manifested as she remembered her life with him before losing the rose colored glasses. She couldn’t help but feel resentful for a moment, as if she had wasted her time, but she knew that wasn’t the case. As painful as it had been, she needed to go through it to get here. She knew this new beginning was going to have rough spots where these thoughts creeped up, but she was determined not to let those thoughts sour her first day.

She got back to unpacking her clothes. Her mom had given her the small, childhood dresser from Amerie’s old bedroom. Amerie put her bras and other underthings in the top drawer then filled the other three with her shorts, bikinis, tank tops, and T-shirts. Her mountain of hoodies would never fit in the small closet, so she left a stack almost three feet high in the corner of the room. She pulled a navy blue hoodie from the stack and slipped it over her head before untying her hair. She grabbed a hammer and nails and hung one of her paintings above her bed. It showcased a mountain lake with a small clearing in front of it, both surrounded by pines and Aspen trees. To the right, a small herd of elk grazed, unaware of a black wolf standing just at the edge of the trees. The wold seemed to look directly at her as she straightened out the painting. She had painted this

She quickly made her bed and threw on a few extra blankets. October in Montana meant cold nights, but she was looking forward to the stars over the lake after a snow storm. The weather for the next ten days still called for clear skies, but she knew that wouldn’t last much longer. The first snow fall had been two weeks ago, and only small piles of snow in the shade of forest trees remained. She smiled to herself as she imagined Milo playing in snow for the first time.

Amerie put on some music and kept herself busy with packing. She took a few breaks throughout the day to go outside and play with Milo, occasionally glancing toward the trees where she still felt eyes on her, but never seeing anything. The number of unpacked boxes continued to dwindle until she only had a few left.

Eventually, the sun started to set on the opposite side of the lake. She laid on her couch with a plate of chicken tenders and Mac and cheese she’d made for dinner and watched the sun slowly dip below the horizon. After she finished her meal, the sun had disappeared, and the sky was a palette of bright pinks, oranges, and purples as the darkness creeped in, bringing the stars with it.

Amerie carried a pile of broken down boxes out to her recycling bin by the side of her house while Milo sniffed around the yard in search for a spot to do his business. Amerie tilted her head back to look at the sky and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She smiled softly then sat down on a chair on her deck with her laptop. She filled out some forms for her new job ad the sky continued to darken. A flash of green had her looking upwards as the northern lights faintly danced across the sky, seeming to welcome her home. Her heart warmed. She smiled to herself.